Petty Officer Jones-883E18 moved with the rest of his pod across the Telkan-2 ocean, surfacing briefly to take a breath and then back down into the water. The first impacts were up ahead, slashing into the water.

--filters online people moving up on thing-- Jones clicked. --biofilter shields on--

His pod clicked their responses as Jones brought his own biofilter shield up, the energy shield designed to destroy microbial or viral life down to prions while letting the water flow through.

Jones's pod were biowarfare scouts. They had been scouring around destroyed Precursors craft that had landed in the oceans, making sure that no Precursor was releasing bioweapons into the water. They were already outfitted to find foreign viral or microbial life and the switch from possible Precursor infections to whatever was coming in from the outer system was within tolerances.

--reduce cavitation-- Jones ordered. --thrusters at 30% prepare to release if necessary--

The pod dropped from 150 knots down to 45 knots, lowering the power to the water drives attached to their combat scout harnesses.

--prepare sneak drives-- Jones ordered. The pod of dolphins flexed muscles, opening up the caterpillar drives built into their bodies but keeping the puckered sphincter muscles closed.

--thrusters to zero-- Jones ordered. He sent out a high pitched pulse backed by millimetric wave sonar pulse with a tight enough bandwidth to pick up microspores. --caterpillar drives to 10%, biofilters on--

The pod slowed down, their shields glimmering as they reached the leading edge of the impact area. It was slowly moving forward, planetary rotation as well as the widening semi-circular leading edge of the cone of the approaching spheres.

--surface and document-- Jones ordered. Three of his pod were set up for atmospheric examination and recording, including real time debris spectographic analysis and recording. They moved rigidly, their muscles locked and keeping them on a least acoustic profile, letting the caterpillar drives propel them without even a whisper.

They surfaced and gave alert clicks. The sky was full of streaks as the first wave of intruders burned through the atmosphere, leaving behind ringlike puffs of debris that fell.

--need high scans lots lots incoming-- Seaman Tracey-836F86 clicked.

--do it lots of biomass incoming-- Jones answered. --its coming in the water--

The three dolphins ran heavy scans, running scans as hard and as long as they could as the objects fell from the sky, puffing out smaller capsules that deployed tilted wings that let the capsule slow its descent as it spun.

--biomixers incoming pee-oh jones-- Booth-318D98 squealed. --many many spraying at one zero zero meters to five zero meters--

--secondary deployment-- Tracey clicked. --capsule bombs--

Jones ordered his two 'sweepers' to get to work. The two dolphins brought up their personal skin shields and dropped their biofields, activating their biomass recorders. They swept through the water, watching the levels of their biomass collectors rise quickly. Altered algae, standard ocean micro-organisms under attack by sleek viruses designed to penetrate and alter the organism.

--permission to open gene crackers-- Ulmata-529B72 requested.

--negative-- Jones said. --collection only genecracker and biomass fleet support incoming--

--not in time jones-- Shirley-381A52 sniped. --we should have had genome cracker support coming into this we are the only genome cracker or biomass unit--

--let me check with command shirley-- Jones answered. He surfaced and oriented his sat-link, swapped codes, and opened a link. It took a minute and Jones could feel the amount of data moving through the air for a long moment.

"20251, go ahead, Jones," came Gene Control.

--permission to open genome cracker warfare packages-- Jones sent back. He hated the data-link at time, it made him sound like he had a speech impediment.

"Negative. Upon return Genome Cracker will be opened up," Control answered. "Get the data and get the hell out, there's something weird going on."

--roger jones out-- The uplifted dolphin answered. He changed channels, took a deep breath, and submerged again. --get data we go back and do genome cracking at base--

--watching this stuff change we have biomass cells attacking existing cells changing to stem cells-- Ulmata said. --building blocks to make other things extinction attack--

--low speed collection sweep then back getting thick out here-- Jones said.

--many many incoming-- Booth clicked. --diving--

A few more minutes passed as the dolphins collected up more data. The cells were beginning to clump up, shifting their purpose. Ulmata swept through some and noted how much the new cell packages looked like modified algae.

Finally, Jones called a retreat, pinging their destination. Jones had them abandon stealth and run straight for the bay at flank speed, risking overheating the jet propulsion system. It took three hours, once Jones ordered a cooldown of the engines by diving deep and surfacing in shallow curves. The rotation of the planet and the spread out wave front meant that more and more were coming down.

--wasted time jones-- Charlie-837A83 panted as they surfaced for a minute. --ocean being seeded might need biomass control soon--

--biomass fleet enroute-- Jones answered.

--from clone worlds take months longer time more biomass altered harder to undo-- Charlie said. He took a deep breath and dived sharp to get his turbocharges into the colder deeper water to the cool them.

--going to need elven queens jones-- Shirley said, clicking a snort into the end.

--go to oh-two filters-- Jones ordered less than 75 miles from the harbor. He didn't want his people surfacing, inhaling, and sucking in a bog lungful of the spores in the air. The rest of the dolphins clicked in annoyance but they knew he was right. The spores and other biomatter raining from the sky definitely was designed to attack other cells.

Usually the dolphins would have surfaced in the bay, dancing across the water to stretch and relax, but the bay was being sleeted with debris exploding out from the space debris. Instead they went through the locks, waiting as their collection and analysis gear was removed.

--team needs isolation seven two hours-- Jones ordered.

--jones come on-- Shirley tried.

--no risk too high-- Jones snapped back. He blew bubbles into the water then surfaced for a breath. --alien cellular attack on planet could effect us--

The others clicked their doubt but went with it.

Jones was the pod leader after all.

----------------

JAWS-ANDREA detected the incoming sleet of the initial orbital bombardment and computed the trajectory patterns in tenths of a secod. The banks of infinite repeaters went to maximum as he raked them out of the sky. Just beyond his ability to perform air interdiction SURGE-JAMES opened up, meshing his anti-air capabilities with JAWS-ANDREA.

The enemy is attempting to land biomass attack weapons on both ground and sea theaters. I use directed energy rather than kinetics both due to ammunition conservation and the use of directed energy to sterilize the path of the weapon as well as the target. I primarily move to high impulse laser weaponry, holding back on the variable frequency option, as well as plasma weaponry for shorter range targets with more mass. Ion and kinetic infinite repeaters are held back due to a lesser effect.

I computer 93% chance that the Dinochrome Brigade will be able to eliminate over 75% of land mass targeted biomass munitions will be destroyed with a corresponding drop in efficiency with a higher percentage of interceptions.

The biomass sleet is increasing in thickness and I alert the air defense units nearby via BATTACNET to direct their fire. 382 seconds later fuel air charges begin to erupt in the middle atmosphere. Secondary armaments crack open the thicker armored biomass delivery systems so that lighter armored delivery systems can be destroyed by the fuel-air charges.

Navy vessels are maneuvering to intercept larger organisms.

I computer 98% chance that the Enemy did not expect nor had they planned for armed human ships in the system and rather are designed to attack a defenseless world. I log a suggestion that all Telkan native life-forms in shelters have additional biomass filter screens as a probably line of attack would be upon the Telkan life forms.

Spores have begun landing and my battle-screens hiss with the constant downpour. KRATOS-VANCE reports that incoming biomass in his area has increased due to a vagracy in the upper atmosphere air currents and FAIRY-MCCROTCHPUNCH shifts position by 11.2km in order to provide additional support. FAIRY-MCCROTCHPUNCH has their area of operations under control.

It will be some 15 hours until this initial attack is followed immediately by larger landing units, these containing living life forms. The data gained by the Clone World troops 'disposable troops' has provided invaluable, although part of me questions the ethical considerations of the Clone World 'use until destruction methods' I cannot deny that it is effective.

The thunder of guns picked up as the BOLOs went to maximum fire on their closer range infinite repeaters. Point defense units began engaging, linking in with the bolo fireplan. Warborgs, meshed in, reconfigured their attack weaponry and joined in on the interlocking web of fire as all of them worked to scour as much of the incoming biomass from the atmosphere as possible.

While sweeping the Enemy's first attack vector out of the sky can be somewhat exhilarating I find myself wondering what the enemy hopes to bring to bear against not only the Dinochrome Brigade but against the (Heavy Metal) units that made planetfall on Telkan in the last month. Bioplasma can be an excellent weapon against lightly armored troops even in duralloy or durachrome but human armor depends upon warsteel, flintsteel, and hyperiron with ion/molecular bonding and alignment. I deduce that, if the enemy is adaptable, it will require a minimum of 32 days to come up with unforeseen weaponry that can damage hyperiron and hyperiron alloys.

The ANDREA half of me reminds myself that Mantid bladearms can score and even puncture warsteel and not to dismiss biological adaptation.

Navy units have begun engaging. The intial front of the second wave is largely wrapped in drop-pods and the Navy vessels are rapidly clearing the second wave. I estimate, and NAVINT concurs, that while roughly 83.732% of the Enemy's second wave will be destroyed and another 4.3612% will be crippled and burn up upon reentry, that 10% of the wave managing to make planetfall merely means it will take that much longer for the Enemy to engage.

We engage our tracks and move 22.8 km to position two, guns still active. I receive the message from Space Force Command: ALLWEAPFREE and rejoice.

Although I do take a 0.023 millisecond pause when I realize use of large scale weapons, including antimatter and graviton massive detonation weapons. Command has ordered me to produce a VLRS warhead set that concerns me slightly.

Anti-matter sleet warheads. Designed to spill out a large amount of anti-matter and cover an expansive area with it both to destroy the Enemy and to produce anti-matter 'fog' on the ground. It is akin to white phosphorous of Pre-Diasporia, which, strangely enough, are what Command wants me to creation engine up for the mortar warheads.

I compute a 83.82% probability that Command has already determined that this engagement will go to what humans call 'Total War', something that they usually try to avoid.

Could NAVINT be already considering abandoning the system before the battle with the actual Enemy has even begun? Humans are tenacious and dedicated warriors, but they plan for every eventuality, which is one reason that six attempted exterminations have only resulted in Terran Descent Humans becoming wider spread.

Night has fallen and still my guns are firing. I have begun rotating out infinite repeaters to allow cooldown, barrel and trigger mechanism replacement, as well as ammunition manufacturing. The entire sky is alive with a web of carefully aimed laser and plasma weapons. Additionally my fellow BOLOs and I have taken to moving through areas of high density biomass, using our battle-screens to destroy the biomass as it falls to the surface.

Command has ordered all non-combat personnel, regardless of status, into shelters.

The leading units of the Enemy's second wave are only an hour out.

We are the Dinochrome Brigade. Whatever the Enemy throws at us does not matter.

They are the Enemy. They only exist to be destroyed.

I am JAWS-ANDREA as we will not fail.

-----------

Colonel Harvey watched Brentili'ik pace back and forth across the 'office' in the shelter. She kept stalking around the holodisplay of the entire planet as if she could change what was being displayed through determination while doing laps. Her fists were against he sides, her eyes wide, and her ears perked up. Harvey had noticed that she had a habit of tapping herself between her shoulderblades with her own tail when she was stressed or agitated and right now it looked like she was trying to transmit Morse Code versions of the last State of the Confederacy Address.

"How can you just sit there eating?" Brentili'ik asked, suddenly stopping.

Harvey knew she was still angry. When the signal had come for all command staff to retreat to the bunkers she had refused.

So Harvey had ordered one of the warborgs to physically pick her up and carry her.

She'd bit the warborg once before realizing that warsteel was tougher than her teeth.

"Because, Madame Director, I am hungry," Colonel Harvey told the small Telkan. "I cannot do anything at this moment, so I am going to eat and take a nap with my datalink set to awaken me if I am needed."

Brentili'ik glared at the human, her eyes opened wide and her ears tilted forward. "You can sleep at a time like this?"

"Madame Director, I have learned to sleep whenever the opportunity presents itself. I gained that skill during the Clownface Nebula War, where my unit was under enemy artillery for sixty-eight days, sustained heavily enough that the bedrock was cracked by the guns of the enemy," Harvey said. He took another bite and chewed it, staring at the small Telkan.

Brentili'ik scowled, slapping her tail against her back twice. "It just feels so..." She couldn't find the words and began stalking around the holodisplay again.

Harvey knew the best thing to do was to let the Telkan work it out for herself. She had no idea, but Harvey had been impressed with just how far a former janitor had progressed in barely over a year. Education for the broodcarriers, taking over the responsibility for millions of her fellow Telkans, coordinating the massive social upheavals her people were dealing with.

"I feel useless!" Brentili'ik snarled, slapping the floor with the tip of her tail.

"Yup. Feel the same way," Harvey said. He ripped another big bite of his sandwich off and stared at Bentili'ik as he chewed. When he swallowed he continued. "I'd prefer to be in a GypsyRose model, hell, even an Akira Model mech out there fighting, but what is there to fight yet? Nanospores? Biomass cellular attacks?" he shrugged. "Right fight for the right tool."

He tapped his desk with a finger them used his thumb to swipe up the little bit of sauce.

"If everything goes well, we won't have to do anything more than sit in this shelter and stare at each other. If everything goes horribly wrong we'll be trying to evacuate what little of your people we can get off the planet, watching the casualty count rise and the refugee count drop, with the refugee ships ripped apart even as they flee," Harvey said. "Trust me, Madame Director, the more boring it is for us, the better."

Brentili'ik's eyes narrowed in shock. "You mean, we could lose?"

"We have no idea of the enemy's goals or capabilities. That puts the battle in doubt. I don't like a battle in doubt," Harvey said.

Brentili'ik moved over to her data terminal and began typing. "I must draw up an evacuation plan."

Harvey cut off her data access with a twitch of his datalink.

"No, Madame Director, you need to eat and rest. You have been awake for over a full day of local time. You will start making errors soon, critical errors that you would have never made," Harvey said.

Brentili'ik glared at him and Harvey shrugged.

"Eat. Take a nap. Your datalink will wake you up if you're needed," Harvey said. He used his thumb to wipe sauce from one corner of his mouth. "That's an order from military authority, Madame Director."

Her back and tail stiff Brentili'ik stomped away into her small cubicle.

Harvey dipped a corner of his sandwich in his sauce and kept one eye on the holodisplay.

--------------------

Vuxten watched the air defense and point defense weapons switch through their firing order. They were firing in a staggered pattern, letting their weapons cool off. It was impressive, he had to admit. He had heard that they were tied into the planetary defense net with the massive BOLO tanks so the seeming random fire was actually pinpoint calibrated fire.

After a few moments of watching the fire light up the night sky Vuxten went back over to the hole in the Precursor machine he was standing on, jumping through the hole. His suit flared energy at his feet as he landed softly after a thirty meter drop.

Walking around, Vuxten ensured his two squads were resting. The fight was still in the air, still in atmosphere. There wasn't much his men could currently do.

The Lieutenant requested his hourly update and Vuxten was pleased that his men were just fine. Once he checked on everything he sat down, leaned against a generator that had failed as soon as it had been hooked up, and closed his eyes.

The Precursor War had taught him to sleep when he could.

Outside the weapons still roared.

-----------

Ekret stood next to Trucker, watching the holodisplay.

The Telkan worlds were still 129 hours out, and once they dropped in system it could be several hours until V Corps (Mixed Metal) could made planetfall. 1st Armored Recon (Speed Metal) was currently being loaded into drop ship cradles.

"I still think that we'll be landing into enemy forces and not even know it," Trucker mused.

"BOLOs are on the ground. I'm sure they can keep landing areas open," Major Engram stated.

Trucker shook his head. "There's 28 BOLOs on the surface. Even with total interlock, they're not going to knock down everything. If this organism swarm has encountered and defeated technological enemies before than things will get through."

"We should double-check the protective systems. Maybe go to Type-III biofilters?" Ekret suggested.

Trucker nodde then look up. "Configure your CBRAN (Chemical Biological Radiation Atomic Nanite) systems for nanite and biological weapons. I've got a feeling this is going to be a multi-vector attack."

Ekret just nodded along with the rest of the group.

"I'll go talk to Ol' Smokey No, get his opinion when he's done talking to the other admirals," Trucker said. He spit into the bottle and looked around. "Let's get it done."

----------------

V CORPS (MIXED METAL)

System arrival in 131 hours.

Will adjust planning according to local data.

---------NOTHING FOLLOWS------

TELNAK GESTALT

OK. Thanks. Please be safe.

-------NOTHING FOLLOWS-------

MANTID FREE WORLDS

You don't have to answer those ones, dear one. He's probably not even listening anyway. Most of those Metal guys are deaf anyway from all the gunfire. Unless you're yelling artillery impact gird coordinates he probably wouldn't understand you anyway.

-------NOTHING FOLLOWS------

V CORPS (MIXED METAL)

Hardy fucking har har.

------NOTHING FOLLOWS-----

>Mantid Free Worlds whistles innocently and looks out the window